Getting a job with a court reporting firm in this tight market involves a lot more than in the past when there was a real shortage of court reporters in the court reporting industry.
A court reporter has to sell themselves, make their resume stand out very clearly from the rest. I have been focusing on the initial email which is the first impression, and the vehicle which will make a court reporter agency owner want to look at the resume. Personalize, personalize and let me stress again, personalize that email so that the person receiving it wants to get to know you a little better.
How to personalize the email. For starters, know something about the court reporting firm the email is going to, ie, look at the website and make reference to information you learned about the firm from their website. I can’t stress enough how a little personalizing goes a long way. Say something nice and relevant about the website, ie, it was helpful because of or interesting because of or good design. Give a compliment. That goes a long way.
I am looking at an email I received today. Instead of Hello, try Hello, Ms. Feldman. And, yes, please use the right gender. Most of the emails I get are addressed wrong. Tell me about the experience you have with the type of work we do. And I don’t think I have ever seen anybody list the professional organizations they belong to, ie, state and national court reporter groups. More tomorrow.